Cyberpunk: Spartan Walker

Lieutenant, Silva said, I hope you can survive the next forty-eight hours, but I think twenty-four hours will be enough, because by then we will have left here.

McKay had been looking at the remains of the Flood lying on the metal plate, but the last words pulled her eyes back. Silva noticed the change in her eyes and understood that his words had an effect.

'Get out of here,' sir? Where are we going? she asked.

Go home, Silva said with confidence on his face, back to the place full of military bands, military medals and promotion awards. Then, with the trust earned here, we will have the opportunity to build a whole hell of a team A force of paratroopers, we will fight back the Covenanters and send them back to the womb where they came from.

And what about the Flood? McKay asked, her eyes studying his face carefully, What about them?

Let them die, Silva sneered, This halo is a hundred and eighty thousand miles away from the earth, so it won't affect us or anything.

Sounds great, McKay said cautiously, but how do we leave?

Ah, Silva replied, it's all my idea. Remember the Truth and Harmony? We will make the necessary preparations to seize it from the Covenant. What else can this ship do? Space navigation. I'll let Wellesley give it a try - it might take a while to get him there, but he might be able to get the ship off the ground.

Silva turned slightly sideways and looked at the body of the Flood lying on the cold iron bed. Imagine! Returning to Earth on a Covenant cruiser, fully loaded with Covenant technology and data intelligence from the halo, it will definitely cause a huge sensation! Humanity needs a victory now, so let's just do it Extra big!”

He sniffed, and even the stench from the Flood's corpse seemed to become sweeter.

Only then did McKay clearly see half of Silva's illuminated face opposite her. Only then did she realize the burning ambition behind her boss's actions. She understood that even his wildest dreams had come true. , she will not share a little bit of the glory that Silva is chasing. As long as she can bring back alive marines - this reward is enough for her.

A veteran's proverb flashed through her mind: Never stand in the same trench with a hero. Honors and promotions in the military are tempting, but at this moment, she is only fighting for survival, simple and straightforward.

Seeing the fire of hope in McKay's eyes, Silva knew he had succeeded. Later, he returned to the office alone and made a call.

A few minutes later, Warrant Officer Loggins walked into the office.

Sir. The warrant officer, who had a scar on his face from his eyes to his mouth, saluted Silva.

Silva stared at him, wishing he was McKay, but he knew very well that McKay was definitely not someone who could do such a thing well. Close the door. Silva pointed behind him.

Yes, sir. Loggins turned around and did as he was told, and the office darkened.

Silva fell back slightly, his chair creaking and bending, What are the intentions of the four hell paratroopers?

Regarding Tommy and his group who disappeared in the Covenant arsenal, his attitude was: since their death has not yet been confirmed, he has to keep a guard up in case they come back.

There is almost no possibility of winning over, their attitude is very tough. Loggins' face darkened, Especially the shorter recruit, she took action directly, and my men are still lying in the infirmary groaning.

Silva sighed. He values ​​every paratrooper brother and doesn't want to see them hanging out with Spartan freaks - it's best to win them over to fight them together. But it seems that the four paratroopers who followed Price all have the good quality that the army should have-loyalty.

Now that they have disappeared into the facility with Price, they are probably in danger. Silva really hoped that the sergeant who went in to find them would also die inside, so that he would be relieved.

The office lights flickered, and Silva dismissed Loggins, then began preparations for the assault on the Truth and Harmony.

——

There was deathly silence before Mendoza's eyes, and the stench seemed not to let go of his eardrums, invading his nasal cavity with a gurgling sound. He screamed involuntarily as he felt sharp tentacles piercing his uniform, digging into his skin, twisting beneath his skin and piercing his spinal cord. A sharp pain hit him, his vision went dark and he lost consciousness.

The parasite injected a certain chemical component into his blood, and he gradually regained his consciousness.

He couldn't see anything and tried to scream for help, but he couldn't make any sound. His heartbeat quickened and his hands and feet gradually became numb. Breathing became heavy.

His comrades seemed to be calling his name in his ears, but he gradually lost consciousness in other parts of his body. Something evil had invaded, crazily suppressing his thoughts, occupying most of the cerebral cortex, and contaminating his brain. He gradually lost control of his body and developed a disgusting and dirty desire.

This desire is more greedy than appetite, sexual desire, or the desire for power. This desire is a kind of nothingness, an endless whirlpool that consumes every passion, every effort, and every tiny fragment in his life.

He struggled to scream, but to no avail.

Suddenly, his eyesight slowly became clear. He saw Captain Keyes leaning against the wall, firing at the little balls of flesh, while Langdon screamed and was drowned out by the monsters, which terrified him. It wasn't until Langdon stopped struggling that he suddenly came to his senses, turned around and wanted to escape, but his unruly legs caused him to fall to the ground, and those little meatballs engulfed him.

His vision went dark, then became clear again. He felt inexplicably that a long time had passed, but he couldn't tell how long it had been. He found himself in a strange liminal state.

A strange combination of circumstances, as if God was playing with the corpse in his hand, the alien thoughts that invaded his body were suppressed due to the long dormancy. By the time it becomes active enough to take over and exert control, creating a zombie warrior, it discovers that it lacks the strength and willpower to fully dominate its host's mind.

Mendoza was powerless against it and could only allow the invading intelligent creatures to do as they pleased. It controlled his muscle tissue, twitching his throat like a child with a new toy, making him roar loudly. In an illusory dream, he watched his comrades lose their sense of autonomy one by one, and their consciousness was completely destroyed. destroy. He screamed, the last breath expelled from his lungs, but no one looked back at him.